How is Social Media Used for Business?

That was a question someone asked me a week ago by a business owner who “targets individuals who are business owners/consultants and people within a certain age group”. She then added that she was ”wet behind the ears at this” and expressed hope that I could help figure out how to market her products. She further wanted to know “about blogging and how to attract followers and maybe even create a newsletter that could be linked to a social media site.”

One thing about me is I absolutely LOVE answering questions. I’d play Trivial Pursuit every day if only I could get my hubby (a Monopoly devotee) and my little one (a Candy Land fan) on board. Usually, when answering questions I write long detailed e-mails. But it occurred to me that I already adressed many of the above questions on my blog:

Let’s start with “what’s social media” – it’s basically a catch-phrase that refers to all the conversations between individuals, businesses and organizations, that happen online. These conversations can be in various formats – written words, videos, audio, photos, you name it. The key is not so much the form (full-length blog post, video, etc) or even specific channel used (Facebook, Twitter, blog, etc), but the fact that it’s a CONVERSATION (as opposed to a monologue). So if there’s a way for more than 1 party to join in and discuss things – through posts, comments, status updates, reviews, etc – then it belongs to social media.
 
As applied to specific channels:
 
Blogs – allow for conversations to happen through comments – that’s a social media channel
Facebook – is basically built on conversations – that’s also a social media channel
Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, etc… – conversations between users are either foundation of these sites (Twitter) or at least possible through commenting, linking, sharing, etc – that’s all social media channels
 
Newsletters (sent via e-mail) – if someone decides to respond to a newsletter article, there’s no easy way for them to do it other than e-mailing the newsletter author. Newsletters do not allow for open conversation easily visible to all parties; instead they are primarily means of one-way communication. So newsletters are NOT social media.
 
If you are considering whether to add social media to your marketing strategy, be aware of the barriers to avoid wasting valuable time and getting disappointed with the results.  

Of course, with tens of thousands blogs and hundreds of social networking/bookmarking sites, it’s important to narrow the list down quite a bit and figure out which social networks would be the best for you to be on. 
 
But there’s more to social media strategy than selecting the best channels. This post on building a social media strategy can help you get started. 

If you are considering blogging, then be aware of the time it’ll take to write and maintain a blog. It also helps to put together an editorial calendar at least for the first couple of months just until you get into the groove of things. I also wrote a post that helps decide whether to have a newsletter, a blog or both.
 
And don’t forget, you can leave questions for me in the post comments as well as by e-mailing me directly at yelena@oneclickva.com. Keep ‘em coming

Social Networks – Are You in the Right Ones?

Let’s say you, the business owner, want to start marketing your business using social media and, more specifically, social networks. So you hire a virtual assistant or a social media assistant to help you get going and she sends you a proposal with a list of networks she will get you on. Or maybe you do it all yourself… Continue reading

Should Realtors Tweet?

Q: My client is a Commercial Real Estate Company. Most of the employees do not use the computer for anything other than searching listings and sending emails.  Social Media to them seems like a waste of time and money. Is it possible that in industries such as Commercial Real Estate, where there is no substitute for experience, we might have to wait for Social Media users to grow up before they… Continue reading | 2 Comments

More Article Marketing

I’ve been one busy bee over the last few weeks; so busy, in fact, that I didn’t have time or energy to update this blog and for this I am sorry. So what was I so busy with, you ask? Well, a large part of it was article marketing for my clients. And I’d like to share some more article marketing ideas now.

One of the most frequently-asked questions… Continue reading | 1 Comment

Virtual Assistant Rates and Elance Work

Can a virtual assistant (or any other virtual professional for that matter) get decent work from Elance or is it just a waste of time? That’s not a rhetorical question, but something that’s being actively discussed on various forums and blogs. I am particularly interested in reading all the negative comments which basically revolve around the following issues:

1. Rates are too low;
2. Rates are too low;
3. Rates are too low.

The blame is then distributed… Continue reading | 3 Comments

3 Article Marketing Myths That Cost You Money

 

When it rains, it pours. It is true for, among other things, article marketing. Lately I’ve been doing lots and lots of it for a couple of clients. I’ve also started getting more inquiries into my article marketing… Continue reading | 1 Comment

February Check-in

Wew, another month flew by and let me tell you, I’m making some progress at building a sustainable part-time social media support business that would provide sufficient supplimentary income for my family (that’s my goal for this year). Continue reading

Who Throws Away Dry Bouquets, You or Your Client?

Valentine’s Day was one week ago. And by now even the most long-lasting V-day bouquets have wilted. I myself had to toss away some dry roses yesterday. Which got me thinking about customer service and taking care of your client.

I mean, does your work stop after the project is delivered? And when you do work on a project or a task for your client, do you think of the present… Continue reading

Part-Time Business Owners Need Not Apply

As I was looking for a networking group to join, I came across one that basically advised start-up and part-time business owners to look elsewhere. I can’t say I totally understand their motives, but hey, it’s their group. So I’ll just move on.

But it got me thinking – is it even possible to have a part-time business? Let’s say, to be a full-time stay-at-home mom during the day and a… Continue reading

January Check-in

With all that’s been going on in January, I am seriously questioning the idea of building a part-time business. Is it really possible? How should I adjust my goals and expectations? How should I schedule tasks and manage my time?

But first, I think I ought to report on my January progress:

Just to remind you (and myself), my business goal for the first 6 months of this year is to “Create… Continue reading | 1 Comment

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